Best Actress

Best Actor

Emmys love cop shows, so why not ‘Southland’?

Recently, cable network TNT announced its cancellation of the critically acclaimed police drama “Southland,” which ended its fifth and final season on a cliffhanger where the life of Officer John Cooper (Michael Cudlitz) hung in the balance. On May 22, Cudlitz and his co-star Regina King were both nominated for Critics’ Choice TV Awards for their performances, but the show has never been on the Emmy radar, apart from a pair of Creative Arts wins for Best Stunt Coordination.

The lack of recognition is even stranger when you consider the storied history of cop shows at the Emmys. Past winners of Best Drama Series include “Police Story” (1976), “The Rockford Files” (1978), “Hill Street Blues” (1981-1984), “Cagney & Lacey” (1985-1986), “NYPD Blue” (1995), and “Law & Order” (1997). A number of other crime-fighters have been nominated for the top prize, including “Kojak,” “Columbo,” “Miami Vice,” and “CSI.” And many more police dramas have earned nominations and wins for acting, writing, and directing.

One reason for “Southland’s” shortfall is probably its low ratings. It narrowly avoided cancellation year after year and averaged fewer than two million viewers in its final season, but the Emmys have championed ratings underdogs before, even helped rescue a few from cancellation (including the aforementioned “Cagney & Lacey”).

Perhaps voters are also not as fond of police dramas as they were in the ’80s and ’90s. It’s true that no such series has won the top Emmy since “Law & Order” in ’97 – unless you expand the definition to include the counter-terrorist agents of “24” (Best Drama, 2006) and “Homeland” (Best Drama, 2012) – but a number of other police dramas have earned nominations and wins in major categories in recent years, including “Dexter,” “The Killing,” and TNT’s own “The Closer,” which received five Best Drama Actress bids and one win for star Kyra Sedgwick.

So what accounts for Emmy’s blind spot where “Southland” is concerned? And can it stage a last-minute coup like “Friday Night Lights,” which earned its first and only Best Drama bid for its finale season? Or will the show, like poor Officer Cooper, be left hanging?

4 thoughts on “Emmys love cop shows, so why not ‘Southland’?”

Makes no sense that shows like downtown Abby ( zzzz) and mad men get lower ratings than south land yet they get nominated. Even after all the talk of these two over rated and obviously single target shows, their ratings get no better. South land was original , gritty and showed off great acting and people I assume I afraid of real and prob the old people who vote rather see a bunch of Europeans sip tea or smoke cigarettes in an office.

It aired on TNT, right? I think that might have been part of its problem. If NBC had kept it, I think it would be a better known show and would be more on their radar. I think most basic cable channels are nowhere near the Emmy radar with the exception of AMC and FX. And even FX shows don’t get near the recognition they should.

SouthLAnd’s cast consistently proved they were Emmy worthy in every single episode. If Emmy voters have seen greater television than what was demonstrated in Chaos or Reckoning, I’d like to hear about it. The show was gritty, dirty, and ugly – and heartbreakingly real. Police officers constantly applaud the show’s realism. It’s a shame that TNT chose not to promote it for its fifth and final year. If this is truly the end of the road for SouthLAnd (I’m still holding out hope it will get picked up by another network), then this should be it’s year to get the elusive Emmy nod. Seriously.

RECORD EVERY EPISODE, I love this show since I found it two years ago, where is the sense in canceling it? Give it another chance and try advertising it.!!!!!!!! I watch each episode several times and I love Law & Order. This is much more realistic. Please bring it back,